A trip to Chicago is not only an opportunity to compete in a national competition for one Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) student, but also will reunite her with her sister for the first time in six years.

Aixa Rodriguez, who was born and raised in Chicago, is among three GNTC students whose placement in their competitions earlier this year at the Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) State Competition in Atlanta qualified them to compete in the PBL National Leadership Conference on June 24-27 in Chicago. She is the only GNTC student competing in Chicago.

“I am beyond excited to be going back to Chicago,” said Rodriguez, a Marketing Management student who now lives in Rome and attends classes on the Floyd County Campus. “I have an incredible bond with my sister. We were both put up for adoption and met for the first time when I was 16. We became immediate best friends. I couldn't imagine my life without her.”

 “We haven’t seen each other since my wedding in 2016,” she said. “I can't wait to see her again and hit up our favorite food spots while catching up on the latest gossip.”

Although she has lived in the Southeast for four years, her body is still acclimated to Chicago’s temperatures, she said. In addition to taking a break from the scorching summer heat and visiting her family, the national competition will allow her to stretch her self-confidence, which has grown since participating in PBL.

“I didn't think I stood a chance to even be nominated for an award in one state competition and then I placed first,” she said. “I thought there were many other competitors who had better chances of winning than I did. You always hear ‘There's always going to be someone smarter and more qualified than you.’”